New Guidelines Acknowledge The Reality: Babies Do Sleep In Mom's Bed

"A notable, if subtle, change in sleep guidelines released Monday from the American Academy of Pediatrics acknowledges the reality of those long nights and what parents should do if they can't always follow the guidelines to the letter. The goal is to reduce the risk of sleep deaths in babies.

"We recognize the fact that not only do mothers often inadvertently fall asleep with the infant in their bed, but many mothers choose to bed share," says Lori Feldman-Winter, a co-author of the new guidelines and a professor of pediatrics at Cooper University Health Care in Camden, N.J. "We thought it was prudent to provide guidance on making the bed-sharing arrangement as safe as possible and provide guidance on what populations are most at risk when bed sharing."

"I think it's a sign, like they did with the media guidelines, that the AAP is more in tune with what's happening with parents," Friedman says. "You can look at the data and say this is the best thing to do, but if you're in the home, things are very different."

In addition to recommendations for those who end up bed sharing, the revised guidelines emphasize the importance of breast-feeding and skin-to-skin contact in reducing SIDS risk. A period of neurodevelopmental vulnerability is thought to be a major factor in SIDS, and skin-to-skin contact and breast-feeding both contribute to neurodevelopmental maturity and normal respiratory breathing patterns, Feldman-Winter explained."